Secondary or storage battery



B. FORD.

SECONDARY OR STORAGE BATTERY. APPLICATION FILED APR.14,19T6.

RENEWED JUNE 21,1919.-

Pated Feb. 3,1920.

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B. FUND.

SECONDARY 0H STORAGE BATTEHY.

APPLICATION msn 111111.14, 1916. RENEWED 11111521, 19191v l 1329,59@.Patented .F011 :5, 15131),

2 SHEETS-SHEET 2.

, the same with BRUCE FORD, OF PHILADELPHIA, PENNSYLVANIA.

SECONDARY OR STORAGE BATTERY.

Application filed April 14, 1916, Serial No. 91,025.

To all whom t may concern:

Be it known that I, BRUCE FORD, a citizen of the United States, and aresident of Philadelphia, in the county of Philadelphia and State ofPennsylvania, have invented certain new and useful. ImprovementsunSeconda-ry or .Storage Batteries, of which the following is aspecification.

The principal objects yof the present 1nvention are to improve:secondary or stor age batteries in regard to structure and operation insuch a way that they can be successfully operatedv by unskilled usersand in such a way that they are structurally capable ofwithstandingincidents of usage while comparativelyv inexpensive and easy tomanufacture.

The invention will be claimed at the end hereof, but willl be firstdescribed in connection with the accompanying drawings forming parthereof and in which Figure 1, is an elevational view, principally insection, of a battery embodying eatures of the invention.

Fig. 2, is a horizontal sectional view of parts omitted and theirlocation indicated in broken lines.

Fig. 3, is an end view with parts broken away, and

Fig. f1, is a detached view, partly in section, illustrating amodification.

The jar 1, as of glass, is provided on its bottom with three depressions2, arranged at the points of an imaginary triangle and constituting athree-point support, so that the jar will remain steady when placed uponan uneven support. The jar is also provided with a lateral bulge 3,constituting a sight gage. Around the outside of the jar and near itsopen end is a bead or *ange 5 and above the bead the outside surface ofthe jar is slightly beveled or contracted as at 6. When the jar isblown, which is the usual wayto make a glass jar the contracted surfaceat 6 above the bead 5 is true because it is made so by being blownagainst the mold. The cover 7 may consist of hard rubber or othersuitable material and may be reinforced as by depending ribs 8, shown asarranged in parallel pairs. At the center of the cover plate there is adepression 9, with a hole at the bottom, which receives the filling andvent plug 10, the depression acting as a funnel. The edge of the coveris turned or offset, forming a iiange 11. From the cover the plates 12and 13 de- Specification of Letters Patent.

, which imparts lightness,

Patented Feb. 3, 1920. Renewed .Tune 21, 1919. Serial No. 305,871.

pend, by means of posts 14 and bus-bars 15. The posts 11 are secured tothe cover by nuts 16 and collars or enlargements 17 arranged on oppositesides of the covers, and the enlargements 17 may be fitted between theribs S. The plates are suspended in this way clear of the bottom andwalls of the cell and the separators 18 are arranged between the platesand are preferably larger than the plates to prevent connection across.their edges. The bottom edge of each plate is provided with hook-likeprojections 1!) and 20, and 21 and 22. On one set ot plates, in thepresent instance, the negative plates, the projections 19 and 2O arecomparatively near the vertical edges. On the other set of plates, inthe present instance the positive plates, the projections 21 and 22 arenearer to the center of the plates and are faced in opposition to theprojections 19 and 20. 23 are rods of insulating material as hard rubberengaged by the various pro jections and extending crosswise of theplates. These rods areshown as of generally V-shape and as of hollowsection and they are iitted to the hook-like projections. The rods serveto support the separators and also to mutually support and interlock theplates in such a way that they remain in proper position and may notswing or turn about the unions of the posts 14 with the cover as acenter. Vhere each plate is provided with two projections, as shown inFig. 1, the plates are held against swinging be inverted.

As shown in Fig. 4, each plate is provided with but one projection 19aor 21a and in this case the plates are only mutually held in position bythe rod 23- when the battery is in upright position. So far as theprojections are concerned they are the same on each plate, but of coursethe plates of unlike polarity are oppositely turned.

Between the parts 6 and 7 of the jar and cover and extending over thetop edge of the jar there is a sealing compound 24 which is preventedfrom accidentally working out by the joint formed between the flange 5and bead 11 so that when the cover is put on with its offset flange 5even if the battery outside of the top of the jar there is no danger ofsqueezing out gravity to respond in buoyancy to changes of density otthe electrolyte. These balls Whilefreely movable are retained in thebulge by the edges ot' the electrode structure and are, of course,t'r-eely exposed to the path of circulation of the electrolyte andtherefore susceptible to changes in its density.

lVhere a number ot cellsI are connected up together and subjected tosimilar treatment it is not necessary to provide each cell with a bulgeand with balls. The terminal 27 of one of the posts 14 may be rigidwhile the terminal 28 of the post H of unlike polarity is of flexiblematerial and comparatively long. In this Way any confusion in connectingup a number of cells is avoided and the cells may be connected by meansof a single bolt or the like passed through the apertures 2E) and 30 inthe terminals and this is a simple, expeditious and safe method ofconnecting up the cells.

When the cell is fully charged the specific `gravity of the electrolyteis great so that both balls rise to the top of the bulge. This positionot the balls indicates that the battery is fully charged. As soon ascurrent is taken from the battery the specific gravity of theelectrolyte is not so great so that one ot the balls drops and indicatesthat the battery is not Jfully charged. When the battery is so tardischarged that it is advisable to recharge it the specific gravity ofthe electrolyte is not so great, and both balls tall thus indicatingthat it is desirable to recharge the battery.

It Will be obvious to those skilled in the art to which the inventionrelates that moditications may be made in details of construction andarrangement Without departing trom the spirit of the invention, whichllat* ter is not limited other than as required by the appended claim andthe prior state ot' the art.

What I claim is:

In a storage battery the combination ot a cover provided with an oifsetand tlanged rim, a jar having an external bead and provided above thebead with a contracted surtace fitting the margin of the rim and otwhich the inclination is more acute than the angle of the inner face ofthe flange of the cover to provide a V-shaped space, sealing compoundarranged in the V-shaped space and retained by the joint made by theliange and bead, and a plate structure suspended from the cover and ofwhich the Weightin cooperation VWith the shape of said space tends toforce the compound inward, substantially as described.

BRUCE FORD.

